I grabbed that link simply because it was the first one that had a picture I wanted. I have to agree that their choices are questionable to me as well - but I suppose it is a jumping off point. The young Elizabeth Taylor (pictured) was better looking to me. Se became perhaps more regal as she aged but less beautiful. Judy Garland probably peaked when she was driving the munchkins crazy on The Wizard of Oz, not to condone the little fellow's pedophilic urges of course. Marilyn, Jayne Mansfield (actually saw her as a child), Mamie Van Doren were all more sex symbols than beauties. Taht's not to say they didn't have attractive faces but I don't know that most fans of the time weren't more interested in the 37-23-36 (MM's vitals - studio claim) than the faces. I'd like to see more foreign faces as well. When you're talking movies though, Hollywood has always been the standard. Everyone knows the American stars but Americans usually only see foreign actors when they appear in our films. The internet and other factors are changing that gradually. I think the appeal of the 40's era personalities has as much to do with the period as the faces. Stars have always been America's version of the kind of royalty that I think people have an innate longing for. It's something that with a few exceptions like the Kennedys our other national figures don't have. Today's stars are too human and too 'common' for lack of a better word. There is no studio system to protect their images and today, any publicity, no matter how bizarre is considered a plus. Can you imagine Bogie jumping up and down on a couch over his love for Bacall? Would Tracy and Hepburn gloried in a lurid affair or messy public divorces? The endlessly intrusive press is part of the problem but I think that in many cases, the stars are willing participants in the feeding frenzy. There's simply an attitude that doesn't seem to exist anymore. Today people don't even care about the way they dress. You see major box office stars appear on talk shows dressed in ratty, ragged clothing or ridiculous costumes more often than not and then they behave like giggling schoolgirls or idiots. There are exceptions - George Clooney comes to mind. If I looked as good as that man does in a well tailored suit, I'd sleep in one. I suppose it's an effort to be accessible to the fans but I think idols need to be a bit mysterious. You can be gracious and open but when royalty becomes too much a part of the rabble, they lose their magic.

"Democracy is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance." - H. L. Mencken